NAIROBI Aug 24 (Agencies) - The government could push Somalia into deeper chaos by recruiting an armed force when it should be mediating a restoration of order in lawless Mogadishu, a prominent political opponent of President Abdullahi Yusuf said.
In a Reuters interview, speaker of parliament Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan urged Yusuf's fledgling administration to become involved in discussions on how to stabilise the militia-infested capital, adding that this could not be done by force.
The government has been recruiting fighters across the country in recent weeks in what looks to some Somalis like the prelude to an attack on bases held by some cabinet ministers critical of Yusuf, many of whom are based in Mogadishu.
Yusuf, an Ethiopian-backed former army officer chosen as president at peace talks last year, has declined to disclose the force's size but said there was nothing sinister about it. He vowed to disarm the country's many militias using peaceful means.
'We hear that there are some forces in Mustahil and that the president visited them,' Hassan said late on Tuesday, referring to an area on the border with neighbouring Ethiopia.
'But I don't think Somalis need the use of force at this time, unless they want to create more chaos. What we need is dialogue and mediation by neutral bodies like the U.N. to solve the differences that exist within the government,' he said.
'They (the government) were meant to plead with the people and convince them to put down their guns, but if they just sit and say they will only move to the capital when it is peaceful, when will it be peaceful and who is supposed to bring the peace?
'It's the work of the government to restore peace and security in the capital and other parts of our country.'
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Sharif Hassan and several heavily armed cabinet ministers want Yusuf to come and govern from Mogadishu but Yusuf, whose political base is north-central Somalia, is working temporarily from provincial towns as he feels the capital is too risky.
Critics say the attempt by Yusuf, 70, to build up a force is consistent with his past as a provincial military strongman who has never shown much flair for the diplomatic deal-making skills needed to build alliances among Somalia's fractious clans.
Allies say Yusuf will not get the respect of Mogadishu's warlords -- some of whom serve in his cabinet -- unless he first amasses enough force to make them appreciate the need to talk.
Somalia has been without a central government since warlords ousted former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 plunging the Horn of Africa nation into anarchy. Most of Somalia has since been carved into territories held by rival militias.
Hassan, in Nairobi seeking a U.S. visa to attend an international parliamentarians' conference in Washington, said Yusuf's government was avoiding what he called its duty to restore security to the country of up to 10 million.
Hassan failed to attend a U.N.-planned reconciliation meeting in Nairobi on Friday with Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi, a Yusuf ally, because Gedi had said Hassan must first abandon his opposition to the government's policies.
'When he said I must join his camp first before talking I decided to abstain,' Hassan said. 'But I believe we can agree on the differences existing. I acknowledge our president and prime minister, it is only that we have different opinions.'
Hassan added in answer to questions he had no plans to call for a vote of no confidence in the government when he attempts to reconvene the 275-member assembly in Mogadishu on Aug 27.
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